A political party manifesto for the PRS: What landlords DON’T want from politicians
3 years ago | 11 comments
Mayor of West Yorkshire blasts landlords for raising rents
9:29 AM, 6th October 2023, 3 years ago
101
Categories:
The mayor of West Yorkshire has launched a scathing attack on landlords, in a new interview.
Labour mayor Tracy Brabin has criticised landlords who raise rents in a cost-of-living crisis.
However, she does not advocate for the use of rent controls and instead wants to focus on building more affordable homes.
Avaricious and greedy
Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, told Inside Housing magazine: “People are becoming homeless because landlords are putting rents up in order to be in line with market prices, when actually they don’t need it because they’re in a fixed mortgage themselves.
“It just avaricious, and it’s greedy. I would say to landlords that do that, you’re not really welcome in West Yorkshire because it’s not fair. Particularly when the cost of living is squeezing people’s incomes.”
Ms Brabin, whose combined authority covers Bradford, Wakefield, Huddersfield, Halifax and Leeds, added: “A third of all children in West Yorkshire are living in poverty. 200,000 families are using food banks. This is fuelled not just by the cost of living but also rising rents.”
Not thought about rent controls
This year many labour mayors including Sadiq Khan and Andy Burnham have called for an immediate rent freeze to help renters deal with the cost-of-living crisis.
Labour’s Lisa Nandy slapped down the calls for rent controls in June, saying: “Rent controls that cut rents for some will almost certainly leave others homeless.”
Ms Brabin stopped short of joining her fellow mayors in directly calling for rent control powers. She said: “I’ve not thought about rent controls currently, it’s not in the forefront of my mind.”
A spokesperson for Ms Brabin later told Inside Housing magazine that building affordable homes was more important to the mayor.
Retrofit social homes
In Leeds last year at the Holtdale estate, 190 social homes were retrofitted with heat pumps, solar panels and insulation by Leeds City Council and low carbon equipment provider, Equans, at a cost of £9.6m.
Ms Brabin praised the work at the housing estate and said more needs to be done.
She said: “There are 680,000 social homes across West Yorkshire and we have to retrofit them all. So while this programme is really fantastic, and the outcomes are really spectacular, we’ve got to turbocharge that delivery.”
The full interview can be read here (for some readers this may be behind a paywall).
Tags:
affordable housing, Cost of Living Crisis, housing crisis, Landlord criticism, rent controls debate, Rent increase, Tracy Brabin, West Yorkshire mayor
Comments
Have Your Say
Every day, landlords who want to influence policy and share real-world experience add their voice here. Your perspective helps keep the debate balanced.
Not a member yet? Join In Seconds
Login with
or
Previous Article
The Conservatives hate landlords - Pass it onNext Article
Rental market crisis: NRLA urges Government to actRelated Articles
Lib Dems want to introduce landlord licensing and rent controls
3 years ago | 38 comments
Angela Rayner – Will rent controls and tax rises for landlords be on the agenda?
3 years ago | 13 comments
Member Since June 2023 - Comments: 188
5:26 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by JeggNegg at 08/10/2023 – 17:10
[email protected]
Member Since January 2016 - Comments: 33
5:33 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by JeggNegg at 08/10/2023 – 17:10
Thats a lot of questions and not easy for anyone to give you clear answers, you might want to find a good agent or sell up and avoid the stress.
Member Since June 2023 - Comments: 188
6:10 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Laurie at 08/10/2023 – 17:33Sell up Goverment has destroyed PRS
No more sleepless nights
[email protected]
Member Since May 2016 - Comments: 1570 - Articles: 16
6:54 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Gromit at 08/10/2023 – 07:49
When you say ‘ Socialism ‘ – your obviously referring to the current government.
A wolf dressed up as a lamb
Member Since June 2023 - Comments: 188
7:29 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
[email protected]
Member Since September 2015 - Comments: 1013
7:58 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Chris @ Possession Friend at 08/10/2023 – 18:54I’ve been saying for sometime now that the current Conservative Party is somewhere left of Tony Blair’s New Labour!
Member Since January 2022 - Comments: 267
9:18 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Laurie at 08/10/2023 – 17:33
Thanks Laurie
These were the variables I thought I had to consider before I bought £300,000 property
As so many variables I decided not to buy.
Still have deposit cash to invest in bbc Isa
Member Since January 2022 - Comments: 267
9:25 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by JeggNegg at 08/10/2023 – 21:18
ISA
Member Since November 2013 - Comments: 185
10:47 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by JeggNegg at 08/10/2023 – 21:25
An interesting stat from Adam Lawrence, Partners in Property/Propenomix, this morning regarding rent affordability,
“Since Jan 2005, rents are up 46.5% across England (as of May 2023). Average weekly earnings (staying nominal) are up 71.6% in the same period. We can apply inflation to those figures – around 68.1% – and if we do, we see that rents are cheaper now in real terms – £100 in Jan 2005 in rent is £87.15 in May 2023 – whereas wages have just about kept pace – £100 in Jan 2005 wages is £102.08. Following this logic on, rent is about 85% of the burden that it was to tenants in Jan 2005”.
Who’d have thought that?!
Member Since January 2022 - Comments: 267
11:14 PM, 8th October 2023, About 3 years ago
Reply to the comment left by Anne Nixon at 08/10/2023 – 22:47
what a great stat.
one for Shelter to consider maybe?